


Like an Owl in a Tea Shop

by strawberryriver



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: BokuAka Week 2016, Harry Potter AU, M/M, day: magic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-12
Updated: 2016-04-12
Packaged: 2018-06-01 19:39:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,065
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6533770
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/strawberryriver/pseuds/strawberryriver
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Akaashi is the potions master at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and Bokuto is the Care of Magical Creatures Professor. Harry Potter AU</p>
<p>Gift for Simple_Symphonia! </p>
<p>-------</p>
<p>“I'll bet you a whole galleon that they're dating.”</p>
<p>“No way! I'll take that bet and raise that they're not dating. I overheard Professor Kuroo helping Professor Bokuto think of date ideas.”</p>
<p>“That doesn't mean anything! Professor Bokuto is kind of a mess isn't he? He'd need help dating Professor Akaashi no matter what.”</p>
<p>Akaashi tried to ignore the idle student gossip outside his door. It happened every year, he didn't know why the students were so invested in his love life. As far as he was concerned it shouldn't matter to them whether he and Bokuto were dating or not. </p>
<p>Though sometimes explaining that to Bokuto was something of a challenge. </p>
<p>And it was extremely worrying that Kuroo was involved in this yet again.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Like an Owl in a Tea Shop

“I'll bet you a whole galleon that they're dating.”

“No way! I'll take that bet and raise that they're not dating. I overheard Professor Kuroo helping Professor Bokuto think of date ideas.”

“That doesn't mean anything! Professor Bokuto is kind of a mess isn't he? He'd need help dating Professor Akaashi no matter what.”

Akaashi tried to ignore the idle student gossip outside his door. It happened every year, he didn't know why the students were so invested in his love life. As far as he was concerned it shouldn't matter to them whether he and Bokuto were dating or not. 

Though sometimes explaining that to Bokuto was something of a challenge. 

And it was extremely worrying that Kuroo was involved in this yet again. 

Akaashi got up with the intentions of taking a walk and escaping students gossip but instead found his feet carrying him to the teachers lounge, which was just another brand of gossip. Sometimes he wondered if he were a masochist. 

The fact that it was nearing Valentine's Day only added more fuel to the fire. He'd heard from Kenma that some teachers had started a betting pool on whether or not Bokuto would try to take him to madame Puddifoot’s again. Akaashi hoped not, their last visit there had been a disaster and he was sure they were still banned. He’d also heard rumors that someone (Kuroo) had hired Cupids again, and he sincerely hoped that it was just a rumor. 

He knew, deep down, that it was a vain, vain hope. 

“I heard a few years ago that he tried to transfigure the cup into an owl and instead got the table. There was tea everywhere!” 

Akaashi veered away from the teachers lounge. Never again did he want to relive the Valentine’s Day of a few years ago. Bokuto had the best intentions, sometimes with the worst results, and he wished everyone could just forget it happened. Still he couldn’t blame them, it was a funny story if you weren’t the one covered in tea watching a table-sized owl destroy a very nice tea shop. And subsequently were banned for life from that tea shop by and understandably irate witch. 

He missed her tea.

Instead Akaashi headed towards the dungeons, hoping that no students nor fellow professors would bother him in his office. He did need to plan his next lesson, and since he knew the students wouldn’t be able to concentrate on an actual lesson, he needed to come up with something fun. Something seasonally appropriate. Emphasis on _appropriate_. 

_Amortentia_ , his mind supplied a little too quickly. Akaashi sighed and leaned back in his chair, it was a little too advanced for most of his younger students, but the older ones would enjoy it. Of course he would have to be very strict about it. It was unlikely that many students would succeed, but there would be a few and he would have to make sure he confiscated all of it. Still, the students would enjoy it, and it was sufficiently seasonal that they would be able to focus. And he could manage to slip in some lessons about proper ingredients handling alongside it, with the students none the wiser. 

\-------

Unfortunately the gossip in the days leading up to Valentine’s Day only grew worse. Akaashi was now aware of three different student-led betting pools (were they together, would Bokuto try to take him to Madame Puddifoot’s again, was Akaashi under some spell and if so could someone figure out how to break it and see if he starts screaming). 

That last one was a little insulting. Akaashi was aware that Bokuto was eccentric at best and obnoxious at worst, but that didn’t mean that he had to be under some sort of spell to fall in love with him. Not that most of the students knew they were in love, it was none of their business. Akaashi maintained that the students didn’t need to know about their relationship and Bokuto maintained that silence the best that he could. 

They didn’t exactly hide it, it wasn’t that Akaashi was ashamed of, or embarrassed by Bokuto. He was the exact opposite, he was fond and proud of almost everything Bokuto did for him, as his closer friends could attest. Akaashi just liked being private and did not like being the subject of gossip. Most older students knew the score anyway, though they didn’t exactly stop the younger student’s betting pools. In Akaashi’s opinion none of it was up for debate. 

Which made his lesson plan that say somewhat...problematic. He had planned on showing his example of a successfully brewed amortentia and then walking his students through the steps. That part went just fine. What he hadn’t planned on was the barrage of questions he would get from his students following the demonstration of a successfully brewed potion.

“Professor, did you ever drink it?”

“How do you know if you’ve had it?” 

“What’s it smell like to _you_ Professor?” That last question made Akaashi’s ears turn pink. To him amortentia smelled like grilled meat, the soap Bokuto used, and the straw from the owlery, where they spent most of their time as students. It was an awful combination, but no one ever said that the love potion smelled good. 

Unfortunately for Akaashi his red ears didn’t go unnoticed by his students and he was faced with a chorus of _Ohhhh!_ And _Professor tell us!_. Akaashi would never understand the obsession with his love life. Kenma once told him it was likely because he was striking and Bokuto was...Bokuto (which Akaashi thought was an unfair assessment, he found Bokuto very attractive) but he didn’t see how that would matter to _students_. Either way, if he didn’t give them an answer he knew they would never calm down and focus on the lesson, so he had to think fast to come up with a sufficient enough answer to serve as a distraction and get the lesson back on track.

“The owlery.” Akaashi said with a deadpan expression. It wasn’t technically a lie and his love of owls was well known, so his distraction technique was met with a laugh and Akaashi was able to move forward with class without any more prying inquiries into his love life. He could consider the day a success if the rest of his lessons went that smoothly. 

Unfortunately, he forgot that Kuroo was Bokuto’s best friend. Best friend, and worst influence. 

Fifth period started with minimal issues. They were his oldest students and smallest class, since not everyone had to take potions. They didn’t ask any invasive questions and were eager to learn how to create the infamous love potion, as well as ask some very good questions about how to cure it. Akaashi was proud that they were his own insightful students, he’d felt like he taught them well. 

Of course, in Akaashi’s life anything that is peaceful can’t stay peaceful for long. This would annoy him more if the cause for the disruption wasn’t so often Bokuto, but he found that he couldn’t ever truly get mad at the eccentric man. Everything he did was earnest and full of energy; even if it disrupted Akaashi’s day it was still somehow sweet. 

Until, of course, the ugliest looking cupid crashed through the door halfway through potions. It wasn’t the first cupid to visit his class that day, students in prior hours had gotten a few and Akaashi only felt pity for them. It was more embarrassing than anything, and if he had anything to say about it, Kuroo would not be the one in charge of Valentine’s Day next year. Akaashi went over to help the cupid up, assuming it was for a student, only to have it burst into song right in front of his face. 

_His eyes are so beautifully green  
He’s the prettiest I’ve ever seen_

_He’s owlways there!  
Willing to help fix my hair! _

_I lowlve you Akaashi Keiji!_

Akaashi assumed Bokuto had tried to fit another owl pun into “love” by the way the cupid’s mouth awkwardly twisted around the words before it dashed out of the room again, off to embarrass someone else. As clumsy as the words were, Akaashi was to be absolutely smitten. Words were not Bokuto’s strong suit and he can tell that he must have worked hard on that little limerick. It was such a sweet gesture and he was struck with how far Bokuto reached to let Akaashi know how much he loved him. 

Once the initial sweetness of the gesture wore off, Akaashi’s second reaction was mortification. Student giggles brought him abruptly out of his thoughts and to the present where he realized that a cupid had flown into his class, serenaded him with owl puns, and left immediately after. Akaashi fought to keep the red down from his face as he cleared his throat in an attempt to silence the student’s barely stifled giggles. 

“You all have potions to maintain, I’m not going to go easy on you just because of a small distraction.” Akaashi said, sweeping around his desk and pretending to busy himself with his ingredients supply until he could get his blush under control. 

As the fifth and final class period drew to a close Akaashi breathed a sigh of relief. No more valentine's day shenanigans had interrupted class and as the day went on, and as his students got older, there were less prying questions. Most of the older students had been here for the Incident of a few years ago and knew exactly who that cupid was from anyway.

Once the students left Akaashi cleaned up his room and sank into his chair. He always felt tired after a long day and today was especially trying, with students obviously distracted from the task at hand. Feeling hungry, Akaashi gathered the strength to go to the great hall for dinner, only to have Bokuto himself throw open the door to his class, basket and blanket in hand. 

“Keiji!!” Bokuto shouted, his voice echoing off the dungeon walls. Akaashi grimaced and Bokuto continued in a softer tone. “I’ve got the coolest surprise for you!! Didja like the song earlier?? Kuroo said it was too stupid but you like owl puns so I thought you’d think it was funny, and it was so hard to wait for your free period, I wanted to send it off right away!!!! But I waited, didja like it?” Bokuto rambled, so eager for Akaashi’s approval. Akaashi groaned inwardly, so Bokuto had just forgotten when his free period was. It was such an honest, Bokuto-esque mistake that he had a hard time being mad (as if he were in the first place).

“The poem was very sweet, Koutarou. But my free period is third, not fifth.” Akaashi gently corrected, and watched Bokuto’s face fall. 

“But!! I thought!! Keiji I’m so sorry! I didn’t want to embarrass you, this is like Hogsmeade all over!” Bokuto groaned, as he gripped his hair and sunk to the floor. Akaashi pulled himself out of his desk chair and went over to rub Bokuto’s back. 

“No it isn’t, Koutarou. The students in my fifth hour class are sixth years. It was only a little embarrassing. I’m more impressed that you wrote those lines yourself, they were nice.” Akaashi’s compliment was enough to perk Bokuto up again, and he grinned at Akaashi. 

“Yeah!! I’ve been workin on ‘em for weeks! Ever since Kuroo told me what he wanted to do for Valentine’s Day.” Bokuto stood and brought Akaashi up with him, firmly taking Akaashi’s hand in his. “And it’s not over!!! I got more I wanna show you!” He looked so hopeful, Akaashi knew it was impossible for him to ever say no to Bokuto. Thankfully, he was curious (and a little wary) about this surprise, so he nodded. 

“Sure. Let's go see the rest of your surprise.” Akaashi hoped those weren’t his last words. 

Bokuto took the basket in one hand and Akaashi’s hand in the other, leading him out of the dungeon and onto castle grounds. It was a cool night and Akaashi pulled his cloak a little tighter as Bokuto found a soft spot of grass and waved his wand to spread a blanket he’d stored on the basket. Akaashi sat, appreciating the setting sun while Bokuto set everything up. 

“This is much quieter.” Akaashi said after a moment, turning to look at his boyfriend. They admittedly hadn’t done anything much in the past few years, opting instead to keep low on Valentine’s Day, but Akaashi wasn’t going to complain about a picnic outside. Bokuto had clearly planned ahead and worked hard on this plan, and Akaashi was more than willing to indulge him. 

“Yeah! Well! You like quiet sometimes right?” Bokuto asked, pausing in his efforts to look at Akaashi. 

“I do. Sometimes.” Akaashi smiled and reached out to stroke Bokuto’s cheek. He couldn’t explain it but he also liked the loud energy Bokuto brought with him everywhere. As much as he valued quiet nights in, he wouldn’t change his boyfriend for the world. 

“Cool. Okay.” Bokuto said, apparently satisfied with the answer as he went back to work setting all the food out before them. It was a smaller sampling of the feast Akaashi knew they were having in the Great Hall right now, Bokuto must have asked the house elves to help him pack the basket before coming down to get Akaashi. 

Akaashi ate while Bokuto told him all about his lesson plan for the day and how the students loved meeting the unicorn he’d managed to bribe out of the Forbidden Forest. Akaashi knew how difficult it was to get such pure creatures to trust humans, and he found himself agreeing with the unicorn’s assessment. Bokuto’s face lit up as he talked about how beautiful she was and Akaashi could feel the love he felt for all creatures, magical or otherwise, radiate off him. Akaashi loved watching Bokuto talk about the things he was passionate about because it made him fall in love with this man all over again as if they were students back at Hogwarts. 

“I had my students make amortentia.” Akaashi admitted, once silence finally fell. Bokuto did a double take. 

“Seriously?? Isn’t that like, really hard??” Bokuto said a little too loudly, mouth full of food. Akaashi found it endearing despite himself. 

“It is. Only a couple were truly successful. It was really more for fun.” Akaashi said as he reached out to wipe some food off Bokuto’s cheek. 

“You’re so cool, Keiji. Is that why your office smelled like you?” Bokuto asked, blessedly swallowing first. Akaashi felt the tips of his ears redden, he hadn’t considered that Bokuto would smell his complete potion, or know what to attribute it to. Bokuto wasn’t dumb by any means, but he was certainly stronger in some skill sets more than others. 

“Likely. I’ve cleaned it all up, but it’s possible.” He knew Bokuto would smell things associated with him, but it felt more intimate to hear it out loud in Bokuto’s own brand of innocent honesty. 

“What’s it smell like to you Keiji? That cool aftershave?” Bokuto leaned in closer so Akaashi could smell it and Akaashi laughed. While it did smell good, that wasn’t it. 

“No. Kuroo wears the same.” Akaashi could feel his blush spreading to his cheeks. “Straw from the owlery, where we spent most of our time as students. And...grilled meat, since it’s all you ever make at home. And your soap.” To anyone else all those smells together would be nauseating, but for Akaashi they just reminded him of Bokuto, and he liked them. Bokuto was silent for far too long, and Akaashi glanced up just as he was crushed into a hug. Bokuto peppered kisses all over his cheeks and nose, so many that Akaashi could barely keep up. 

“Keiji...!!” Bokuto said, finally pulling away enough to give Akaashi some space to breathe. “You’re the cutest! You’re so cute, and I don’t even mean your face!! That’s pretty too, but you’re just…” Akaashi felt his blush now spread all the way down his neck, he didn’t see how telling Bokuto what his amortentia potion smelled like was cute, but it made Bokuto happy and that’s all that mattered. 

“I got somethin’ else to show you too.” Bokuto said as he let go of Akaashi and packed away some of their empty plates to make room. “I worked really hard on this with Kenma!!!” Bokuto pulled his wand out of his sleeve and waved it in the air a few times. His tongue stuck out of the corner of his mouth and his brow creased in concentration, and Akaashi had to fight the urge to reach out and smooth that wrinkle with his thumb. Instead he focused on the bits of light that swirled forth from Bokuto’s wand, shaping into two owls that looked remarkably like them. 

The Bokuto owl extended its wing to the Akaashi owl and they began to dance, swirling around Bokuto and Akaashi as they did. Akaashi was amazed watching the owls dance around him; charms weren’t Bokuto’s strong suit and once again Akaashi found himself deeply touched at the amount of effort Bokuto put into this Valentine's Day. Bokuto hummed beside him and when Bokuto’s song ended the two owls stopped dancing and nestled together, disappearing into a firework heart. 

Before Bokuto could say anything, Akaashi pulled his chin down and connected their lips, hoping his kiss could convey his emotions better than his words. He didn’t trust himself to speak at the moment, and based on the way Bokuto slid his hand around the small of Akaashi’s back, he knew the meaning was felt. 

When the sun had set and the skies opened up to the stars they both laid down on the blanket, hand in hand, pointing out planets and constellations. The February air was cold, even with Bokuto’s borrowed cloak, but with Bokuto chattering in his ear about movements and stars Akaashi couldn’t bring himself to want to move from Bokuto’s side. Not now, not ever. 

\---------

“One galleon, please!” A student chirped happily to another over breakfast. 

“This is so unfair. They were just outside!” 

“Outside holding hands, and _kissing._ ” 

For once, Akaashi didn’t mind the gossip.

**Author's Note:**

> THIS WAS A GIFT FOR [SIMPLE-SYMPHONIA](http://simple-symphonia.tumblr.com/) SHES THE GREATEST OK
> 
> come yell at me on my [tumblr](http://strawberryriver.tumblr.com) and [twitter](https://twitter.com/keiji_ebooks)!!


End file.
